Whatever Will Be Will Be
by KDN89
Summary: Troyella fluff I wrote on a whim about Troy and Gabriella after their first semester in college. Absolutely no angst, non-canon story elements, or original characters. Troyella, COMPLETED
1. The Start of Something New

Winter Break was upon the former students of East High! Former rivals (such as the "Freaky Math Girl" and "Queen of the Drama Department") had long since settled their differences, spurring a tentative friendship between them. Now, they congregated at the local Olive Garden for a jubilant get-together, with plans for a movie sometime later on during their mini-vacation.

In the handful of months the Wildcats were separated, they each either fanned well-established flames or reaped the rewards of budding romance. Undoubtedly, Troy and Gabriella remained together, although Chad, despite what he told his best friend two days before prom, enthusiastically and successfully attempted a long distance relationship with Taylor. To Jason's minute disapproval, his ex-girlfriend Kelsi warmed up to Ryan, who only recently announced they were officially an item. As for Ryan's twin sister, upon deflating her ego to an extent, Sharpay suddenly noticed that Zeke, another Wildcat at the University of Albuquerque and baker of heavenly cookies, wasn't that bad of a catch. Even Jason, albeit a bit slow and uneasy at first with the concept of dating girls that weren't Kelsi, managed to find a sweetheart in college.

Unfortunately, for all the love at the table, none of the boys were particularly keen on watching "Bride Wars", which all their lady loves were dying to see. The girls saw it as sweet and hysterical. The boys saw it as the foreboding of a dark future. Well, save one.

"Gabriella, could you just 'convince' Troy to come along?" Taylor demanded. "If the captain goes, the rest of the lunkheads will follow."

"Fine, but you're gonna hate me for setting Women's Rights back a few decades. . . ." Gabriella replied with a timid smirk, ashamed and amused by how easily she could manipulate her sweetheart.

Sliding her fingers down the top four buttons of her blouse to unfasten them, she gently tugged at the bottom of her blouse to bring the cleavage low enough to subtly reveal her bra, a lacy black piece brilliantly selected to contrast her white shirt in case such seduction was called for. Striding over to an oblivious Troy, she seated herself in his lap so the left side of her body was directed at his chest, her legs innocently crossed. Needing to grab her boyfriend's attention, she lifted one leg high into the air and pivoted her body to face the young basketball star, her leg passing gracefully over his head and allowing gravity to tug on her skirt to reveal more of her bare thigh before she gently rested her leg on the opposite side of Troy's waste.

"Troy. . . ." she started, wrapping her arms around his neck to pull herself forward. Their bodies touched, her breasts directly below Troy's eyes and an eager part of him brushing against her ass. She silently giggled as she watched his eyes dart in every direction in their attempt to avoid being hypnotized by her female wiles. But, sure enough, she noticed the occasional glance flicker towards her cleavage.

"Gabriella, you know I'm really not all that interested in seeing 'Bride Wars'," he reminded her chest. Embarrassed, he hastily asked the ceiling, "I'm straight, remember?"

_Obviously_. Gabriella thought with a smirk as she witnessed another glance down her top.

"I know, but I figured you'd come for me. . . ." she pouted, leaning in so he could "sneak" a better view.

"Um. . . ." was all Troy managed to utter, unable to peel his thoughts from his luscious girlfriend who was currently straddling and seducing him in public.

"I'd be so happy if you came," she added sweetly with a smile. The smile quickly transformed into a "Come hither" look as she leaned forward to his ear and whispered:

"_And I know a few tricks to get ya to come._"

"Damn it, why am I such a sucker for double entendres. . . ." he whined, realizing his pending defeat. "Fine. . . I'm in."

"Yay!" Gabriella cheered to a reluctant Troy.

"But you owe me, Miss Montez," he scolded her as she buttoned her top off and threw her legs back together, although she remained facing him with her arms draped over his shoulders

"Mmm. . . Naked Halo?" she suggested, smiling playfully before kissing him softly on the lips.

"Nice," the athlete replied after they broke apart. With a smirk and a chuckle, he added, "And with you playing, the Arbiter will suck on multiple levels now."

"Hey, I managed to snipe ya before," she retorted, refusing to confirm or deny any underlying sexual insinuations.

"Yeah. In co-op," he reminded her for the umpteenth time before returning to passionately kissing the beautiful young Montez.

"Oh, get a room!" Chad groaned, half to be humorous and half out of disgust.

"Men's or women's?" Troy quickly inquired from Gabriella.

"Women's has more stalls," she replied as she leapt to her feet and enthusiastically darted for the restrooms, locking her hand with Troy's to get him to follow in a timely manner.

"Thanks for the idea, man!" he shouted back to his best friend, his girlfriend directing him towards the opposite side of the restaurant.

"I didn't mean literally!" Chad called back, half the Olive Garden's patrons turning to face the obnoxious commotion.

"They're really in love, aren't they?" Ryan sighed as he watched the blissful couple disappear behind the door segregating the restrooms and the dining room.

"Yeah," Kelsi replied, smiling sweetly ad she wrapped around her choreographer/boyfriend. Their semester at Julliard was demanding, excruciating on their minds and body, but joyful simultaneously. "They make me honestly believe in the words 'Happily ever after'" she admitted.

The group resumed its casual conversations, although they were cut short as an ear-splitting screech shattered all the glassware in the building. Moments later, Gabriella and Troy burst from the bathroom doors and beelined around waiters and tables towards the exit, their clothes slightly askew and loose but toothy grins plastering their faces.

Watching them exit, Jason asked to no one in particular, "Did they just skip the bill?"

Before anyone could reply, however, Sharpay sprinted to their table looking completely mortified.

"Ew! Someone was having sex in the stall right next to me!"

* * *

The next day, a bright Saturday heralded by the beaming sun, the former teammates Bolton, Danforth, Baylor, and Cross were resting up after an exhausting game between the three University of Albuquerque players versus the sole University of California player. Troy lost such an uneven match of course, but only by a margin of two points

As they doused themselves with their own drinking water, their conversation bounced between subjects: basketball, high school playoffs and memories, the changes occurring during their freshmen year, new girlfriends, old girlfriends.

"I never thought Gabriella could become so. . . ." Chad hesitantly admitted while mulling over the events at the restaurant.

"So _what_, Chad?" Troy demanded, feigning a serious tone to send his friend into a panic.

"Um. . . _Adventurous_ in just one semester of college," he replied, hoping he played off any hints of a Gabriella gone wild.

"What can I say?" Troy shrugged, playfully smacking the back of Chad's head with his hand to reassure him he was joking earlier. "After she settled into the Stanford routine, she's become so excited at the prospect of trying new things. And college is a new set of experiences, a whole new world."

"Isn't that song about the female orgasm?" Jason thought aloud.

"Oh, you have _no_ idea." Troy smirked.

"Well, just tread carefully, Troy. You don't want to move things too fast." Zeke offered wisely.

"Yeah. . . ." Troy muttered solemnly, shoving his hands into the pockets of his sports jacket.

"They've been dating _officially_ for like a year and a half now, Zeke," Chad commented as if he was Troy's biographer. "I don't think we need to worry bout 'em moving 'too fast'."

But Chad's words and Zeke's rebuttal went unheard by Troy, who was silently contemplating the miniature velvet box he was fiddling with in his pocket.

* * *

Across town, Gabriella lifted her head from the bathroom counter, having vomited several times earlier that Saturday. Her insides were on fire, but she was terrified at the prospective cause.

Peering into the sink, she recognized the distinct blue line depicted on the back of the box.

She should be happy. She should be proud.

But all she could do was mutter an "Oh, man" before resting her nauseous head on the counter once more, completely exhausted physically, mentally, and emotionally.

* * *

_Something's wrong._ Troy thought to himself.

Gabriella wasn't returning his calls. Did he do something to upset her? Did she overhear his plans to "Boo!" throughout the entire duration of "Bride Wars"? What the hell was wrong?

_Only one way to find out_.

Thank God he learned to jump high for basketball. Otherwise, he'd never be able to scale the tree bordering the balcony outside his girlfriend's room. Reaching the platform, he carefully stepped over the railing and snuck up to the glass door. Peering inside, he noticed a sullen Miss Montez who was startled by his sudden appearance.

She moved to lock the door, but he quickly pried it open and leaned against the door, preventing her from closing it.

"What do you want, Troy?" Gabriella asked him, knowing (and secretly happy) that his love and persistence would prevent him from leaving her side.

"Well," Troy began slowly, opting to select his words carefully in case he was already in a quagmire with her. "I was hoping to find out why you've been avoiding me for the past week."

"I haven't been avoi--" she began but an unblinking look from her boyfriend cut her off.

"It's complica--" she fumbled to an unyielding gaze.

"I didn't want to scare y--"

Oh, the unrelenting power of the "I-know-you're-lying" stare.

"Damn it, Troy," she whined, slightly perking up as she seated herself on the edge of her bed. "Can't I just make up an excuse and sulk?"

"Well, if I let ya, I'd be a rather lousy fiancée," he admitted, planting himself beside her and embracing her lovingly. His hand slipped into his pocket and recovered a small closed box.

"And father," she blurted out, not quite registering that her boyfriend had vocally upgraded himself to "fiancée" and was now bearing a small gift. But, in a single instant, they both realized what the other had hinted.

"What?!" they simultaneously shouted in shock.

"You're pregnant?" he inquired of her still-flat belly.

"Is that a ring?" she demanded of the still-closed box.

"Well, I was hoping to ask you on Christmas Day, but now. . . ." he trailed off.

". . . But now you don't want to stick around and dash your dreams and future to raise our mutant basketball-playing braniac of a child. . . ." she finished for him, tears forming in her eys and rolling down her cheeks. She knew this would happen. At least if she kept him away, she wouldn't have had to hear it.

"Let me finish my own sentence please," he said softly, gently lifting her face out of hands so that their eyes can meet. He was smiling as he wiped away her tears from the stunned face of such a stunning beauty.

"But now I want to ask you right here, right now. If we marry earlier than I planned, our _first_ child won't be a bastard," he explained, never breaking his sincere smile or his gaze into her eyes, telling her he spoke the truth and with love.

"Troy. . . ." she started, trying to fight back the tears since she couldn't determine whether they spawned from joy or fear. "I don't know. . . We're moving too fast and I'm scared that we won't be able to handle the changes and--"

"Hey, it'll be ok, I know it," he comforted, pulling her in so her head could rest lightly on his chest. After a few awkward seconds of silence, he began to sing:

"This could be the start of something new.

It feels so right, to be here with you.

Oh."

Lifting her head, Gabriella smiled through her worries and tears, adding:

"And now looking in your eyes, I feel in my heart

The start of something new. . . ."

And with that, she leaned in and kissed him with all the passion and fire she held for him since the night they first sang that song together. And as their lips locked, Troy slipped the ring onto Gabriella's finger, the corners of her mouth curling as she felt the minute weight added to her hand.

They may be moving too fast, but the pace and her jogging mate were perfect to her.


	2. Now or Never

**[Author's Note]:** **Like my "Something Blue" story, I had originally intended for this to be a oneshot piece, but sometime after posting the first chapter, I started forming ideas for subsequent chapters and even an ending I really liked.**

**So. . . . More of this train-wreck is in the works. Based on how I'm planning out the segments, I'd venture the story will cap in 4-5 chapters, so I hope you'll enjoy the arc.**

**Unfortunately, as with all my stories, I only have the main story elements planned and not the details, so about 90% of what you read is written spontaneously. If it seems shoddy, let me know please. = )**

**

* * *

**"So. . . W-what're we're trying to t-tell you is. . . ." Troy nervously bumbled, refusing to make eye contact.

"I'm pregnant!" Gabriella hastily stated, channeling all her strength just so she could say those two words. Anxious for a response, she did her best to smile and show enthusiasm despite knowing that either disapproval or apathy was coming next.

"And we're engaged!" her boyfriend revealed, mirroring the love of his life with a half-cheer incorporated into the statement. In his attempt to fake an "I bet we're all excited!" attitude, he failed to notice he presented this revelation with a pair of Jazz Hands as if they'd warm the audience to the prospect of genius NBA babies.

The stray dog they were practicing with got up and walked away without making so much as a "Woof", as if it were snubbing them.

"Son of a bitch!" the frustrated young Bolton shouted at the hound currently trotting towards the opposite end of the street. "No puns intended!"

"Troy. . . ." his disheartened girlfriend started. "How're we supposed to tell our parents if we're struggling to tell _animals roaming the street_?"

Three days had passed since Troy and Gabriella discovered they were pending parents and took the logical step in deciding to become pending spouses as well. During the following days, however, the couple was becoming increasingly nervous and hesitant to tell their parents, their previous practice revelations sessions going far worse than being scoffed at by a dog.

They couldn't drop both bombs over a home-cooked breakfast because Gabriella singed the bottom of her hair while fumbling with a skillet.

They couldn't explain their situation while playing basketball because a distracted Troy got hit in the face by his own ball after it deflected off the backboard.

And they certainly couldn't tell their parents during a lunch out because. . . Well, because Olive Garden had placed a lifetime ban on them and their children following the incident. Their unborn child was already getting kicked out of everywhere except the womb.

Unfortunately, Troy's parents had noticed their son's skittish behavior, predominantly after his trembling steak knife-wielding hands split a dinner plate in twain when he tried to cut his meal. After reassuring his dad he wasn't addicted to cocaine (or PCP or weed or caffeine), the college freshman informed them that Gabriella and Troy will talk to their parents together the following evening, at home, indoors, and with nothing on the stovetop.

Now, they had a little less than four hours before the family discussion and even stray animals were patronizing them.

"We'll just do what we always do," he finally suggested climbing out of his sea of thoughts.

"Break up and get back together in a week or so?" she questioned with a playful smile. "And in the meantime, you sing about how confused and conflicted you are and I'll sing about how much it hurts to leave you?"

"That's never happened before," her boyfriend stated with a smirk, although the comment was lined with doubt.

"I can think of three separate occasions during high school," Gabriella jokingly declared, her nervousness dissipating by simply chatting with her fiancée. Grabbing both his hands, the diamond ring she frantically hid from her mother now being publicly displayed on her finger, she looked into his sparkling eyes and inquired, "So what exactly did you mean then?"

"Draw strength from one another," Troy replied with a smile before wrapping his arm around the waist of his genius girl and leading her back to his house to prepare for the evening.

"I don't ever remember singing emo songs by myself," he thought aloud further down the street.

"Chad said he saw you prancing around the golf course, pretending to roll a pair of dice like you were some Vegas junkie," Gabriella replied with a giggle.

_Damn. Someone saw that_? Bolton thought, poorly concealing the fact he was blushing from embarrassment to the smirking Miss Montez.

* * *

Donning a well-trimmed suit to match his girlfriend's evening dress, Troy guided her by the hand towards the flight of stairs leading into the living room where the Boltons and Gabriella's mother awaited. As they braced themselves for an awkward evening at the top of the staircase, the teenage Montez girl practiced some of the breathing exercises Ryan and Sharpay had taught her during "Twinkle Town" rehearsals.

The Bolton boy, however, was singing to himself in a hushed voice:

"This is the last time to get it right

This is the last chance to make it or not

We got to show what we're all about

Work together!

This is the last chance to ma--"

"Troy," his girlfriend cut him off with a bewildered grin. "Not everything's easier with a tune attached to it."

". . . I was singing out loud again, wasn't I?" he asked, somewhat bashful of the fact that emoting via music had become so second nature to him that he was no longer aware of when it spontaneously occurred.

"Just a little," she informed him with a smile. Having a musical boyfriend was endearing, although it made losing their virginities somewhat awkward.

"Try not to sing about my morning sickness during this fiasco," she teased. And after sparing a moment to tenderly kiss her Prince Charming, she tugged on their intertwined fingers, stepping down the stairs to face the future.


	3. We're All In This Together

**[Author's Note]: I personally didn't like how this chapter came out in comparison to the previous two. Reviews and critiques would be greatly appreciated, as they'll improve the quality of the next chapter. =P**

* * *

"You're _what_?"

"We're prengaged!" Troy repeated, feigning enthusiasm. Somehow fusing two bombs into a single nuke seemed less devastating in his mind.

"Pregnant _and_ engaged," Gabriella clarified somewhat timidly, extremely intimidated by her prospective in-laws.

"Although not engaged _because_ pregnant. . . ." her boyfriend further explained, immediately realizing and dispelling all thoughts of a shotgun wedding.

"Ok. . . ." Jack Bolton started out slowly, struggling to embrace the challenge rather than dismiss it. "Now, I know we can't stop you from doing. . . _whatever_, but I also know that they taught you about protecting yourselves back at East High. Hell, the Health Department, _my department,_ was the one that taught you."

Unfortunately for Troy, the last statement was true. It was awkward enough to get "The Talk" from your dad, but far more embarrassing when he presents the same Public Service Announcement to thirty-two of your peers, who plead of you the following morning to stop the torture.

"We were using a condom. . . ." Gabriella admitted bashfully to her lap, avoiding all eye contact.

"And you still got pregnant?" Mrs. Bolton asked somewhat bewildered.

"Couldn't you have double-bagged it or something?" Coach Bolton inquired, panicking slightly and rising from the couch to pace the living room.

"Come on, dad. Every hoops player knows rubber wears out and tears with friction and prolonged activity," his son responded with a small smile, nodding towards a cracked and worn basketball resting by the door leading to the court outside. He hoped a little humor would diffuse the tension in the room.

Jack Bolton couldn't help but smile. College had made his son cleverer. Not necessarily more rational (Troy was a nineteen year-old father-and-husband-to-be, after all), but at least more clever.

"Look, Dad," Troy began, discarding his excited façade, "Gabriella and I haven't made the best choices in the past, but that doesn't mean we can't make the _right_ decisions for the future."

"Mr. and Mrs. Bolton. . . ." Gabriella spoke softly, encouraged by her boyfriend's courage as he gently placed her hand in his own. The Boltons turned to face Miss Montez, who redirected her gaze to face her future family. "I know this is awfully hasty and immature of us, but. . . it just feels right to us. And after everything your son has done just to be with me and vice-versa, I know our child will always have his or her parents."

"The only thing really worrying me about this pregnancy," she explained, "is that our baby won't have all of his or her grandparents, that I won't have my parents-in-law to help my mother teach me how to be a fantastic wife and mother. . . ."

Jack and Lucille Bolton were speechless. Upon initially hearing the news, they failed to realize this would be their first _grandchild_ and also failed to recognize how highly their future daughter-in-law regarded them. However, Gabriella's mother, who was unusually silent until this revelation, began to quietly sob from her seat.

"Mrs. Montez, we're so sorry for putting you through all th--" Troy tried to comfort her before being cut off.

"No," she started, wiping stray tears away with her sleeve before beaming at them. "This is what I wanted for the both of you. Not necessarily in this order or this soon, but it's what I wanted."

Turning to her daughter, she added with a sniffle, "It's what your _father_ would have wanted for you."

"Mom," Gabriella replied in a soft tone, "I know Dad loved us. And I need your support, your strength, to be able to raise this child, to show that love him or her as much as Dad loved us."

As the emotional Montez women hugged, Troy added, "This can be a struggle if it's just Gabriella and me, but I know we can handle this if we're all in this together."

And with an accepting hug from both his parents, all the teenage Bolton had to worry about was telling the rest of the Wildcats.

* * *

"You're _what_?"

"I'm sorry!" Gabriella explained to Sharpay. "I accidentally left your present at my house."

With Christmas Day less than two days away, the East High gang was gathered at Troy's house for a festive holiday party and gift exchanging. Their parents were isolated to a smaller get-together on the opposite side of the house, making it easier for Troy and Gabriella to tell their friends. However, the young couple had yet to reveal their pregnancy and engagement, opting to wait for a calmer moment that evening. Currently, the guys were playing a two-on-two game outside with Ryan refereeing while the girls stayed indoors, counting presents and swapping private information on their boyfriends.

"It's ok," Sharpay replied, calming herself down using one of Ryan's relaxation techniques. "This gives you an extra day to exchange it for something I really love in case you have any doubts or I don't like it."

"What did you get me?" she asked slowly.

"That pink, sequined dress from Forever 21?" Gabriella replied, nervous about her friend's reaction.

"_And you left it at home?!_" Sharpay screeched.

"Whoa! Turn down the volume!"

This plight heralded the return of the former East High hoopsters, each of whom strolled over to his respective girlfriend and either wrapped around her like or blanket or kissed her lightly on the forehead or lips. After toweling off and post-game trash talking, the basketball boys took their lady loves' hands and seated them before the Christmas tree, eager to dive into the sea of presents at the base of the luminous fir. Deciding now was the ideal moment, as their friends were somewhat distracted from the results of the game with Jason and Troy outscoring Chad and Zeke by a good seventeen points, Troy and Gabriella collected their presents for the group, save Sharpay, and distributed them to their respective recipients.

"Open the cards first," Troy insisted, his somewhat confused friends hesitating before following instructions. There were scattered gasps as the more proficient readers were the first to read:

"_Dear [Insert Friend's Name],_

_In exchange for all the memories and support you've given us these past few years and will undoubtedly bestow upon us for the rest of our lives, we humbly present you this gift and wish you a Merry Christmas._

_Love, Troy and Gabriella_

_P.S.: We cordially invite you to our wedding on August 20__th__, 2009, and the birth of our first child the following month._"

"Subtle, weren't you?" Zeke commented, smiling fondly at his invitation.

"You couldn't afford Christmas cards _and_ wedding invitations?" Chad joked.

"Dude, I couldn't even afford lunch that day we went to Olive Garden," his childhood friend admitted with a hint of shame lining his voice. Beside him, Gabriella gave him a smile paired with a look that told him "You're so lucky they didn't catch us."

"Wait a minute," Taylor began, rounding on the boys who were displaying fewer signs of shock than the girls were. "You weren't surprised by the fact that Gabriella is pregnant or that her and Troy are getting married in less than a year?"

"Well, Troy's been talking about getting a ring since October," Chad explained of his best friend, who was twiddling his thumbs to the side with Gabriella peering up at him with intense passion.

"Yeah, and when he wasn't talking about marrying Gabriella, he was off having sex with Gabriella," Jason added tactlessly.

"Hey!" Gabriella started, worried that her friends would get the wrong idea. "We weren't just 'having sex'; we were being intimate and spending time together!"

"Either was, it was phenomenal," her boyfriend commented with a glow and a smile.

"And it apparently led to little Troyella Boltez," Zeke added with a nod towards Gabriella's belly.

Everyone pondered for a moment over the future Mr. and Mrs. Troy Bolton, the silence broken when Ryan finally stood up and hugged Gabriella.

"Congrats, you guys," he told them with a sincere smile as he turned to present Troy with a more masculine handshake. His sister followed suit, and one-by-one, the group clustered together in a mass of hugging and congratulations.

The girls were shedding joyful tears while the guys made training schedules for the basketball prodigy growing in Gabriella. But whatever plans were made, the Wildcats had band together to ensure the perfect wedding for Troy and Gabriella and euphoric birth of their child.


	4. What Time Is It?

"What time is it?"

Ryan rolled his head to the side, completely bored in the waiting room, Kelsi curled in a ball to his left, her head resting tenderly on her boyfriend's shoulder. Across from them, Chad glanced at his watch, Taylor reading a magazine beside him.

"Summertime," the University of Albuquerque hoopster explained, not completely aware of the question or the answer.

"It's our vacation!" Sharpay whined, somewhat disappointed that her valuable vacation time was being squandered. She wholeheartedly supported the birth of the Bolton child, but did she really have to be confined to a hospital waiting room from 8:00 PM to 4:17 AM on a Saturday?

* * *

Eight hours into childbirth and Gabriella was still straining herself to release her child into the world. The doctor suggested a C-Section earlier, but she initially refused because splitting her stomach open sounded far worse than stretching private parts. Now, minor surgery while conscious didn't sound as physically mortifying.

Her faithful Troy remained beside his fiancée, gripping her hand throughout the entire birthing process. With the wedding only two weeks away, the stress of planning the happy day and a Spring semester lined with eighteen hours of pre-law courses at Stanford led to the premature birth of their child.

After her latest attempt to push, Gabriella fell back onto the hospital bed, drained. Leaning over, her boyfriend planted a soft kiss on her efforts as a reward for her effort, as motivation.

"Is there anything I can do for you, sweetheart?" he inquired, hoping to ease the situation for her, even the slightest.

"Take my mind off this," she practically begged in futility, knowing that there was practically no way for her wish to come true.

"Um. . . ." he pondered for a moment, contemplating all possible options to alleviate some of the mental strain bearing down on his wife-to-be.

"What do you call cheese that's not yours?" he finally inquired with a clever smile.

When no response was presented, he enthusiastically answered, "Nacho cheese!" The nurses and technicians around them groaned from a pain almost equal in magnitude to Gabriella's. But the mother-to-be was smiling back at Troy, the lameness of the joke momentarily distracting her from the unbearable pain of another push.

"I got another one: If eating salmon gives you salmonella, does eatin--" he began after she collapsed onto the pillow once more

"No, Troy," she cut off with a smile, "Eating chicken won't give me 'chickenella'."

"I wasn't going to ask that" was the reply to a skeptical smirk.

Beaming back, Troy ventured "Does 'eating' me give you 'Troyella'?"

* * *

Checking his watch, Chad noted the time: 6:32 AM. Groggily he muttered, "No more waking up at 6:00 AM."

"Cause now our time is all our own," Zeke added sardonically. Chad, Zeke, Jason, and Taylor were the only college students in the group still awake, the Bolton parents and Mrs. Montez waiting nearby for their first grandchild.

"Enough already!" Taylor demanded, mentally worn from the constant complaining of her friends.

"Come on, let's go!" Jack Bolton shouted to the waiting room, his patience running on empty. An awkward silence fell as the children and both Mrs. Bolton and Mrs. Montez stared at him in shock and amusement, the embarrassing situation ending only when Gabriella's screaming resonated from the birthing room door.

* * *

"Ok, Gabriella," her boyfriend encouraged, echoing the doctor. "Just one more push!"

With a shriek that could put Sharpay to shame, Gabriella pushed out a goop-covered baby girl, their precious Alice. Troy was congratulating and thanking his beloved profusely for such a miracle. The mother of his child, exhausted from the physical burdens of childbirth, shut her eyes for a moment's reprieve.

A loud SMACK! and the screams of their newborn daughter filled the room. The new father let out a sigh of relief.

_She's healthy._

But the mother wasn't showing any signs of relief. Her eyes remained closed. The monitor beside them was sounding off less frequently.

_Oh, God, no._

Troy's heart stopped when the beeping stopped.

* * *

**[Author's Note]: Short chapter, I know, but I think it amplifies the suspenseful (or what I hope was suspenseful) ending of Chapter 4. Please don't kill me just yet, cause there's one final chapter coming up!**


	5. You Are The Music In Me

"And a shot by Bolton from beyond the arc enters the net!"

"Last second, Lakers win their second playoff of the NBA Finals!"

The roar of crowds. The rush of adrenaline. His team and supporting fans crowding around him, praising his final shot. Yet, despite the excitement around him, all Troy Bolton felt was disappointment his darling Gabriella wasn't there to see him play.

* * *

"Troy, you're the man!" Jason called out as the Wildcats gathered him at the post-game party at Ryan and Kelsi's house, the two Julliard graduates married and living in Hollywood, their respective talents embraced by the thriving movie industry.

Chad, a rivaling player for the Phoenix Suns backed by his teammate Jason, was in town to play against the Lakers in the playoffs. Their current match over, he eagerly congratulated his best friend after Jason.

"Nice job, Captain!" he admitted humbly, his politician girlfriend Taylor latched onto his arm. Climbing up the American political ladder was an arduous task, but her efforts ensured her a gratifying position in the near future.

Beside them, Zeke, the renowned host of a television cooking show produced by his girlfriend, praised his close friend. Sharpay, however, was absent due to a pending lawsuit, a verse from one of her acclaimed Modern Pop songs being spliced into the lyrics of a less popular artist's poor attempts at music.

"I'm sorry, Troy," the baker apologized. "I know you wish she was here to see you play."

"Who, Sharpay?" Troy inquired somewhat confused. As Zeke and Sharpay lived only a few blocks down, he saw them frequently enough that his friend missing a game once in a while wasn't so disappointing.

"No, I mean Gabriella. . . ." Zeke explained in a comforting tone.

"Yeah. . . ." Troy replied absentmindedly, wondering when he would be able to see his beloved high school sweetheart again.

* * *

After a small victory celebration with the Wildcats, Troy retired to his home in suburban Los Angeles, immediately tucking his exhausted daughter into bed before seating himself on the living room couch and prying open a photo album containing half a decade's worth of memories. As he reviewed each photo, he smiled fondly at the euphoric faces beaming back at him from each picture. He paused, however, on each photo that depicted his developing romance with Gabriella.

His mental and emotional stroll was interrupted by the soft creaking of the front door, announcing the arrival of. . . .

"Hey, Gabriella," Troy called over his shoulder to his beloved wife, still smiling as their younger selves kissed in a photo in front of him.

"I'm so sorry, honey," she cooed, draping herself over the basketball pro's shoulders and kissing him lightly on the neck. "The rest of Sharpay's lawyers are just a flock of vultures that want nothing more than to squeeze ever penny out of this copyright infringement suit!"

"Don't stress yourself to death," her husband whimpered. "I almost lost you once, remember?"

"I promise, this'll be the last time I go to a meeting scheduled during another one of your games," she responded with another kiss, this one planted lovingly on the lips.

"You mean 'a meeting scheduled during another one of our _victories_'," Troy smugly informed her.

With a gasp and a squeal, she squeezed her personal champion, wildly cheering, "Congratulations, Wildcat!"

"Mommy?"

Turning towards the staircase at the opposite side of the living room, Mr. and Mrs. Bolton spotted their five year-old daughter, little Alice, rubbing her sleepy eyes with her hand on the banister.

"Sorry, honey," Gabriella apologized in a hushed voice. "Did we wake you?" she inquired, strolling over to the stairs with her husband in tow. Troy scooped up their baby girl and carried her back to her second story bedroom, the walls lined with stuff animals and the color pink.

Tucking her in for the second time that night, Troy told her softly with a smile, "Try to go back to sleep, Alice."

As they turned to leave their precious child to dream of unicorns, however, they heard her meek voice ask, "Can you sing me a lullaby?" When they returned to her side, leaning over the bed, she added a "Pwease?"

Gabriella, her heartstrings tugged by their daughter's innocent request, flashed Troy a smile before soothingly singing:

"You know the words 'Once upon a time'?

Make you listen; there's a reason.

When you dream, there's a chance you'll find

A little laughter or a 'Happy ever after'."

Wrapping around his wife and watching his daughter drift into a comfortable slumber, Troy joined in:

"Your harmony to the melody

Is echoing inside my head.

A single voice above the noise,

And like a common thread,

Mmm, you're pulling me"

With a yawn, Alice curled up under her comforter, as Gabriella continued with:

"When I hear my favorite song,

I know that we belong.

You are the music in me."

Beaming at his wife, Troy sang:

"Yeah, it's living in all of us

And it's brought us here because. . . ."

Together, they finished singing:

"You are the music in me. . . ."

Sharing a kiss as their daughter wandered around in Dreamland, Troy and Gabriella reflected upon all the warm and perfect memories of their past and present, smiling with each smooth and knowing that more euphoric photos were to come.

* * *

**[Author's Note]:That's the end of it. Hope you enjoyed this poorly written tale. I'm sure there's another HSM story in me somewhere, but I've no idea when it'll reveal itself.**

**Thanks for reading!  
**


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